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BY EGYPT MONOCLE Cairo: Tahrir Square erupted in celebration as the head of Egypt’s Presidential Election Committee (PEC) announced the victory of the Muslim Brotherhood’s candidate Mohamed Morsi. PEC chief Farouk Sultan said that Morsi won 13,230,131 votes, accounting for 51.73 percent. His rival, the last Mubarak-era prime minister and military man Ahmed Shafik raked in 12,347,380 votes, which is 48.27 percent, in an election that saw 51 percent voter turnout, with over 26 million Egyptians showing up at the polls. During the press conference, Sultan detailed some of the main appeals filed by both candidates, and explained PEC’s decisions,…

BY DALIA RABIE Cairo: Somewhere between casting the ballots and announcing a winner, the incoming president’s authorities were outlined through a constitutional declaration issued by the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces. Late Sunday, SCAF published an addendum to the constitutional declaration complementing the one issued on March 30, 2011, arguably stripping the president of basic authorities, rendering him practically powerless. As SCAF broadened its powers, it chipped away at the authorities the elected president was expected to assume. In the face of criticism, SCAF member General Mohamed Al-Asaar assured in a press conference Monday that the elected president will…

BY DALIA RABIE At the press conference Saturday evening, Sultan refused to disclose in whose favor the ballots were marked, saying that it was “clear as day.” Forty-eight violations of the electoral silence were also reported in front of polling stations and referred to the general prosecution, Sultan said. He added that the irregularities do not affect the electoral process. The first day of the runoff in Egypt’s first post-Mubarak presidential election saw a lower turnout compared to the first round. The runoff pits Mubarak’s last prime minister Ahmed Shafik against the candidate of the Muslim Brotherhood’s Freedom and Justice…

BY RANIA AL MALKY Cairo: In his hospital bed at Tora prison, Egypt’s old tyrant must be reveling in satisfaction, seeing that his legacy lives on, as he watches protégé Ahmed Shafik rise from the ashes of his regime and stick his tongue out to the “revolution.” Backed by his uniformed loyal subjects in the military council, a complicit judicial system and his son’s business cronies, Mubarak must be preparing his suitcase, ready to start a new life as an ex-president in Sharm El-Sheikh. The Supreme Constitutional Court Thursday ruled in favor of Shafik, declaring parliament’s amendments to the political…